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Baba Mondi for AFP: The Bektashi State, a 'piece' of land without taxes, police and no army

2025-02-27 08:22:28Aktualitet SHKRUAR NGA REDAKSIA VOX
Baba Mondi for AFP: The Bektashi State, a 'piece' of land without
Father Mondi

Last year, Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama announced plans to create a sovereign Muslim microstate within the country's borders, which would be led by the Sufi sect with around 100,000 members.

"Our state will be a very small spiritual and administrative state... but with a big heart," the Bektashi leader told AFP in Tirana, dressed in a white tunic and a green jacket and hat, his face framed by a white beard.

“The whole world will be able to see the light of the Bektashis.” 

The creation of a religious state in Albania would have been unimaginable during the four-decade communist dictatorship of Enver Hoxha, who banned religion and persecuted clergy and priests.

Hundreds of clergy from all faiths were executed, imprisoned, or sent into exile, while places of worship were destroyed.

But since the fall of communism in the early 1990s, there has been a strong expression of religion in many corners of Albania.

The Bektashis rank as the fourth largest religious community in Albania, after Sunni Muslims, Orthodox Christians, and Catholics.

And while the bureaucratic details of the state are still being determined, along with an official date for its proclamation, Baba Mondi has ambitious plans for the future of his nation.

"This state will have no police, no army, no taxes; it will be spiritual," the leader said.

“Its goal will be to organize and protect Bektashis worldwide.” 

The Bektashi state would also advocate for persecuted members living in countries where they do not have the right to practice their religion, “like in Turkey or Iran,” according to its leader.

The future state will be located on land where a Bektashi temple in Tirana already stands and will cover just 0.11 square kilometers (0.04 square miles) – making it the smallest country on earth.

Currently, the Vatican holds this title with just 0.44 square kilometers of territory.

Peace and love

The Bektashi order was founded in the 13th century in the Ottoman Empire and is considered a tolerant and mystical branch of Islam, open to other religions and philosophies.

Some of the key leaders moved to Albania after being banned in Turkey by the founder of the modern state, Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, in the early 20th century.

Unlike more conservative branches of Islam, Bektashi believers — men and women — worship together, and alcohol consumption is permitted, even encouraged.

"Rakia, like mother's milk, has benefits because it goes straight to the brain without passing through the stomach," said Baba Mondi, referring to the fruit-based strong drink popular in the Balkans.

This practice is part of an overall vision of tolerance and the promotion of harmony, which is central to Bektashi thought, according to Baba Mondi.

“Wherever they have been, the Bektashis have always expressed love, generosity and respect for man as the most perfect creature in this world,” he added.

"We are against conflicts instigated by extremists, we are for peace and love." 

For the Albanian prime minister, ensuring governance for the Bektashis is partly about protecting this spirit of tolerance.

“We must take care of this treasure that is religious tolerance, in order to preserve and promote it,” Rama said during a speech in January, marking the 95th anniversary of the transfer of the Bektashi holy see from Turkey to Albania.

He has not yet announced a timeline for the creation of the state.

But for Baba Mondi and his Sufi followers, the future is filled with possibilities.

"Bektashism has been and will remain a bridge between East and West," Baba Mondi told AFP.

"We have always been a bridge in this world to show that we can live with love, peace and kindness."


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